CHALLENGE

OPPORTUNITY

Each year, hundreds of Chicago families are impacted by violence.

Innovative, tailored post-trauma counseling and support fosters resiliency and helps avert behaviors that may lead to further conflict.

DETAILS

The University of Chicago Medicine shares our community’s concerns about violence and its severe toll. Many of the victims of violence are the children and families we serve. Beyond the medical care we provide to violence victims, particularly children, we invest in proven ways to prevent violence.

Offering a Faithful Hand A South Side community organization, backed by the University of Chicago Medicine, is combating violence and averting behaviors that lead to conflict by joining two evidence-based models that address the cause and effect of crime and violence. The Bronzeville Dream Center focuses on strengthening the community and preventing youth delinquency, substance abuse and violence through Communities that Care. Simultaneously, by training faith and community leaders to provide post-trauma counseling and other support, the center will provide emotional and psychological treatment and assistance for those experiencing post-traumatic stress as a result of conflict. This novel community health model is supported by Bright Star Community Outreach, UChicago Medicine, Northwestern Medicine® and United Way of Metropolitan Chicago. By combining these two evidence-based approaches, the Bronzeville Dream Center aims to prevent violence and build hope, support and resilience for those exposed to trauma and violence—victims as well as perpetrators. The center and its partners have focused on planning and building an infrastructure to achieve its goals. Under the partnership, UChicago Medicine and Northwestern Medicine committed $250,000 each for the first two years of data gathering, implementation, oversight and evaluation.

Healing Children Comer Children’s Hospital Pediatric Mobile Medical Unit is a school-linked program providing comprehensive medical care to South and West Side students. Through preventive care services, the mobile unit staff screens children and adolescents for mental health and emotional concerns, including poor

school performance and exposure to violence and more. Then the unit’s medical team works with University of Chicago psychology staff to provide follow-up care.

1,772 STUDENTS and teachers attended discussions on bullying, depression, dating violence, personal hygiene, STIs and other topics

Care provided at

28

SCHOOLS

243

MENTAL HEALTH encounters

UChicago Medicine Comer Children’s Hospital provides a hospitalbased violence intervention program called Healing Hurt PeopleChicago. The effort includes special intensive case management and access to trauma-focused counseling for pediatric patients who’ve been injured by community violence. Bradley Stolbach, PhD, serves as the clinical director of Healing Hurt PeopleChicago. The program serves patients at Comer Children’s Hospital and John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County.

199 REFERRALS for children and teens injured by violence

180

CHILDREN TREATED

2–18 YEARS OLD

3